DISCLAIMER: I OWN NEITHER HARRY POTTER NOR FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST!

Chapter Nineteen

"Hm…," Ed wondered aloud two days later.

He and Al were now at Dublith as Winry was at Resembool. Ed and Al were at the river bank laying on their backs in the grass. Ed had his hands clasped behind his head as he stared up at the bright blue sky.

"What are you thinking about, Brother?" Al asked, sitting up and looking over at Ed.

"About…," Ed started.

"Are you thinking about the other night?" Al asked. "About Harry's nightmare?"

"I don't think it was a dream," Ed finally answered.

"Why don't you think so?" Al asked.

"Because Dumbledore wouldn't have let all the Weasleys and Harry go early if it was just a nightmare," Ed replied. "I think Mr. Weasley was almost killed. That stupid old geezer not fillin' us in and making us…"

"Maybe Professor Dumbledore didn't want us to worry about Mr. Weasley, Brother," Al guessed. "Besides, we would be too much in the way. Wouldn't we?"

Ed groaned. He sat up.

"I don't see why we had to come back here," Ed complained. "I would rather go to Central City than to stay in this place."

"You know we can't, Ed," Al reminded. "Colonel Mustang and Fuhrer Bradley ordered you to come here so that Scar wouldn't try to -."

"Kill me," Ed completed. "Yeah, yeah, I know. But at least…"

"Look at the bright side, Brother," Al spoke up. "At least we'll be able to -."

"To what?" Ed asked.

Al had went silent and didn't say anything. Ed turned to see what Al was looking at and blanched: Izumi was standing right behind them with her arms crossed over her chest. She had an angry expression.

"What do you think you two boys are doing?" Izumi asked.

"Relaxing," Ed answered.

"When you've got piles of homework to be done?" Izumi asked.

"Well…," Ed started.

"I expect you to be back at the house in ten minutes," Izumi ordered. "You are not to go back outside until it is all completed."

"Yes, Ma'am," Ed and Al obeyed.

"And, Edward, you need to start on your training again," Izumi added.

"Why?" Ed asked.

"You're getting flabby," Izumi explained.

"WHAT?!" Ed exclaimed. "I AM NOT!"

"Oh, then why did I have to buy you a bigger size of clothes?" Izumi asked. "Especially pant sizes?"

"I'm growing!" Ed excused.

"Around the middle more lately," Izumi said. "I'm surprised that Winry hasn't complained to you yet since you both are making love with each other."

Ed's face turned red. Ed lunged at Izumi and tried to punch her, but Izumi dodged Ed's punch and delivered a blow to Ed's stomach and then his back, making Ed scream. A moment later, Ed was laying on the grass and groaning.

"This is one reason why I did not want you attending that school, Edward," Izumi explained, her arms crossed over her chest. "It allowed you to start being lazy and gave you an excuse to be lazy. I see how you eat at school. It's not healthy if you don't have exercise. Every morning before you start on anything, you are to train with me and Alphonse."

"Yes, Ma'am," Ed grumbled.

Izumi helped Ed stand up.

"Now, you and Alphonse get back to the house and start on your homework," Izumi ordered.

Then Ed and Al went back to the Curtis residence. Meanwhile, Winry was at Resembool looking over a design of auto-mail that Pinako had just come up with.

"It's incredible, Granny," Winry approved. "It's just amazing!"

"I thought it would be a perfect design for Edward since it's very cold in the winter in Scotland," Pinako said. "How is he coping?"

"He's coping all right," Winry answered. "He's in pain sometimes, but he doesn't show it much."

"What's wrong?" Pinako asked.

Winry sighed as she sat down on the sofa. She was wearing a pair of baggy pants and a long-sleeved t-shirt.

"I'm learning so much, but…," Winry started.

"The novelty is wearing off," Pinako assumed.

"A bit, but that's not it, Granny," Winry replied. "There's this teacher who works for the Ministry of Magic. She's already put Professor Trelawney and Ms. Izumi on probation."

"You mean, Dolores Umbridge, the High Inquisitor?" Pinako asked.

"How did -?" Winry started.

"I get the Daily Prophet," Pinako interrupted. "I want to see what's going on in the wizarding world while you, Edward, and Alphonse are there. How is Edward liking sixth year?"

"He won't know until next year," Winry answered. "He's been held back because he didn't take the O.W.L. exams, even though he was exempt from it."

"That figures," Pinako grumbled. "Maybe Edward should just quit school and return to the military."

"He wants to, Granny, but he can't," Winry replied. "The Fuhrer has put him on probation until he graduates."

"He'll be nineteen before he graduates," Pinako said. "It sounds like Fuhrer Bradley is up to something."

"I wouldn't be surprised," Winry scoffed. "But I wonder what he could be up to."

"I don't know, Winry," Pinako said. "Has Edward received anything from Colonel Mustang or anybody from the Military lately?"

"No, he can't have contact because the mail is being watched," Winry answered. "The military doesn't want to risk anything."

"Understandable," Pinako agreed.

While Winry and Pinako talked some more, Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny were talking in Harry and Ron's room.

"That dream I had about your dad and the snake, though -" Harry started.

"Harry, you've had these dreams before," Hermione interrupted. "You had flashes of what Voldemort was up to last year."

"This was different," Harry disagreed, shaking his head. "I was inside that snake. It was like I was the snake…What if Voldemort somehow transported me to London -?"

"One day," Hermione sighed angrily, "you'll read Hogwarts, A History, and perhaps that will remind you that you can't Apparate or Disapparate inside Hogwarts! Even Voldemort couldn't just make you fly out of your dormitory, Harry."

"You didn't leave your bed, mate," Ron reminded Harry. "You were thrashing around in your sleep about a minute before we could wake you up…"

Harry paced up and down the room, thinking. What they were all saying was not only comforting, it made sense… Without really thinking, he took a sandwich from the plate on one of the beds and crammed it hungrily into his mouth. Then he swallowed a moment later and looked at Ron, Hermione, and Ginny.

"Where are Ed, Al, and Winry?" Harry asked. "I thought that Dumbledore would have them come too?"

"Well, Professor Dumbledore thought it would be best if they went back home for the holidays with Professor Curtis so they could relax," Hermione answered.

"But isn't it safer here?" Ron asked.

"Maybe, but Professor Dumbledore has his reasons," Hermione reasoned.

"Do you think Professor Curtis got her results yet?" Ron asked. "She hasn't really told us anything like Professor Trelawney."

"I think Professor Curtis is more professional than that old fraud and can handle her results better," Hermione stated. "Besides, it's none of our business."

Harry, Ron, and Ginny looked at each other. They knew that Hermione was just as curious as they were but was trying not to show it.

Christmas came and went and the time for school to begin came up. McGonagall gave Izumi and Ed and Al their own Portkey and went to pick Winry up personally. Izumi was transported to her quarters as Ed and Al were transported to Gryffindor common room. Ed and Al took their trunks to their dormitory and by the time they had come back down to the common room, they saw Winry and McGonagall. McGonagall magicked Winry's trunk up to Winry's common room and then left. Ed, Al, and Winry went to a table by the window and sat down.

"How was your holiday with Ms. Izumi?" Winry asked.

"Hell," Ed answered.

"How was it 'hell'?" Winry asked.

"Teacher made us train every morning before breakfast, and then she made us work on our holiday homework," Al replied. "She told Ed that he was getting too lazy and flabby."

Winry looked at Ed. Ed didn't reply.

"Ed?" Winry asked.

"What?" Ed snapped.

"You don't have to gripe at me, Ed," Winry snapped back. "I'm not the one who called you flabby!"

"Oh yeah, what about before school started up again?" Ed asked. "You called me flabby then!"

"I was joking!" Winry defended.

"That's a likely story!" Ed accused. "Then how else would Teacher know?!"

"Know what?" Winry demanded.

Ed's face grew red.

"You damn well enough," Ed snarled.

Then Ed stomped up to the fifth year boys' dormitory. A moment later, Harry, Ron, and Hermione came to Al and Winry.

"That asshole!" Winry burst out.

Then she went up to the sixth year girls' dormitory.

"What's going on?" Ron asked.

"Brother and Winry got into a fight," Al answered as Harry, Ron, and Hermione sat at the table.

"What was it about this time?" Harry asked.

"It's none of our business," Hermione said.

"Brother wouldn't want me to tell you," Al replied. "He would be even angrier if I did."

"Ed is always angry," Ron pointed out.

A moment later, they saw Winry come out from the girls' dormitories and go to the boys' dormitory. Winry climbed the stairs to the boys' dormitory and entered the fifth year boys' dormitory. Ed was laying face down on his bed.

"What do you want?" Ed asked.

Winry crossed her arms.

"You need to stop being a big baby, Ed," Winry replied.

"I'm not being a baby," Ed whined.

"You are too, Edward," Winry said.

"You would be a baby too if someone called you fat, Winry," Ed pointed out.

"No, I wouldn't," Winry disagreed. "I would kick their asses."

"I tried," Ed said. "But Teacher beat me."

"Of course, Ed, Ms. Izumi always beats you, and you know that," Winry said.

Ed didn't say anything.

"And you are not fat, Edward," Winry scowled. "If you were, I would have told you. Besides, we both get our 'exercise' when we make love."

Winry could see Ed's face go red.

"Ed, you don't have to be embarrassed," Winry said, sitting on the side of Ed's bed. "Let me braid your hair."

Ed looked sideways at her.

"Why?" Ed asked.

"Because your braid is messed up," Winry lied.

"No, it's not," Ed said. "I just braided it before we left Teacher's house."

"Just let me braid it!" Winry demanded.

Ed scowled and sat up on the bed.

"Fine," Ed relented. "Just don't pull any hair."

"I won't," Winry assured.

Ed didn't say anything. He took out his hair tie. Winry slowly ran her fingers through his hair as she got out the small tangles. Then Winry started braiding Ed's hair.